Promotion and fortune in Song Dynasty

Lu Ci left Beijing to return to his hometown as an official, and he needed to go through a lot more formalities than when he was in white clothes.

At the beginning, when he was walking around, he only needed to take the household stickers and apply for public inspection.Now, in addition to the public inspection, it is also necessary to report the first and last name, official position, reason for leaving Beijing, etc. to Yushitai and Shangshu Province for emergency needs.

The only thing that was beyond Lu Ci's expectation was that Zhao Zhen, who thought he was going to find the air to coax and appease him, did not make any entanglements, but approved the memorial without showing his face.

Because Lu Ci returned home this time purely to take care of his mother, not because he was sent to go to the local area for business, naturally there will be no subsidy from the DPRK and China.

Although the treasury cannot be moved for no reason, the private treasury can be the master.

So, although Zhao Zhen didn't call Lu Ci into the palace to meet him, he specially sent a trusted servant and quietly sent some money to Lu's house.

After Lu Ci learned about it, he couldn't laugh or cry, but was also very moved.

Although Zhao Zhen is the only surviving prince under the official family, the environment he lives in has always been the most favorable.But he has a completely different temperament from Zhao Heng: Whenever he gets a reward, if it is food, he simply tastes it and then distributes it to his servants; if it is gold, silver and silk, he puts it in the treasury and almost never uses it; Rare books will be read several times without putting it down, and they will not be eager to keep them privately. Instead, they will be sent to the Imperial College. After the engraving is made, the printed copy will be sent to the pavilion, and the original will be retrieved.

The furnishings in the East Palace are luxurious and extravagant everywhere, all from the hands of Zhao Heng, and have nothing to do with Zhao Zhen's wishes.

Lu Ci got along with him for a long time, and he naturally understood that this little prince may seem taciturn, steady and introverted, but he is actually very disgusted with his father's extravagant and wasteful actions of building palaces and rewarding his officials for no reason.

Now I made a special trip to take out some money and cloth from the private treasury that can be used directly without exchange, and ask the servant to bring him to his house without saying anything, and before I meet him, it is clear that he must accept it and not give him a chance to say goodbye up.

Since it was the student's honest kindness, Lu Ci really did not intend to reject it, so as not to hurt the other party's heart.

Seeing that Lu Ci accepted it readily, the Ji Nei servant was obviously relieved on the spot, and pleaded with a bitter face: "To tell you the truth, before I came, His Highness told you that Lu Zhigao only asked for three months' leave. , Even counting the needs of the exchange, he should be back in February of the next year at the latest. Your Highness has already remembered that at that time, Lu Zhigao must not be too happy to leave, and he will only leave if he is urged three times and four times."

The corner of Lu Ci's mouth twitched.

What kind of misunderstanding does his former student have about the character of his ex-wife?

Lu Ci has selectively forgotten his previous plan - he originally thought to leave for a while and wait and see from a distance. procrastinate.

Seeing that Lu Ci's eyes were subtle and he didn't answer, the waiter Ji Nei suddenly raised his breath nervously, and emphasized: "Lu Zhigao has always acted in a very measured way, surely he wouldn't act like this?"

Lu Ci: "... Please go back to the palace and tell me. Please rest assured, Your Highness."

Ji Nei waiter seemed to be pardoned, so he left happily.

And in the palace, Zhao Zhen, who had finished giving instructions for all today's memorials, used his spare time to start some homework assigned by the Taifu, and was rarely absent-minded.

It wasn't until Ji Nei, who was ordered to go out by him, came back to his life, that his eyes regained their luster: "How?"

Ji Nei waiter hurriedly said: "Please rest assured, Your Highness, everything is going well."

Zhao Zhen nodded in satisfaction.

Immediately afterwards, he asked a few more questions about the specific situation, and when he learned that Lu Ci was leaving in two days, he couldn't help showing a bit of disappointment on his face, and quickly restrained himself, saying gently: "Thank you for your hard work, go down and rest Bar."

Ji Nei's waiter was so touched that he even said he didn't dare to be the queen, so he gradually stepped down.

Zhao Zhenyou had a gentle smile on his face, when he picked up the pen, but for some reason, he didn't write for a long time.

It wasn't until the drop of ink condensed on the tip of the pen finally fell onto the snow-white paper, staining a good paper, that he suddenly put the pen down as if waking up from a dream.

Seeing that the situation of the concubine surnamed 'Li' or the palace servant has not found a suitable person to investigate, and there will be one less person he loves and trusts around him, he is naturally a little anxious.

——There is no rush.

Zhao Zhen thought to himself, rubbed between his brows, and let out a long sigh.

At first, he didn't know the reason why Lu Ci was leaving Beijing suddenly, and he almost made an impulsive move to keep him and send another good doctor to Mizhou to pick up Lu's mother.

Thanks to his prudence, he asked Kou Zhun to discuss it before putting it into practice.

What surprised him was that Kou Xiang, who was indifferent to Lu Ci on the surface, but actually loved him, immediately expressed strong opposition to this idea.

Facing his perplexing questioning, Kou Zhun did not explain the reason in detail, but only mentioned vaguely: "Retiring bravely in the rapids is only for a while; if His Highness rashly keeps people, Lu Ci may be in danger of life."

Zhao Zhen was stunned on the spot.

Even Kou Zhun hastily asked for his resignation and left without knowing it.

It wasn't until night fell, when the weather turned cold, and the servant added clothes and charcoal for him, that he gradually came back to his senses.

He still couldn't find out the suspicious palace man surnamed Li, because his power was too weak, and he was afraid that he would startle the snake, and the truth could not be found out, which would easily kill the other party.

Similarly, he couldn't keep his favorite courtier, Lu Ci, because his father didn't like him being too close to a courtier, and tried his best to pave the way for his promotion, forcing the other party to temporarily avoid the edge.

Zhao Zhen lowered his eyes slowly, feeling hungry in his stomach, but tasted a bitter taste inexplicably in his mouth.

In the final analysis, the reason why he was able to perform the duties of supervising the country was only because it was not what his father wanted.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhao Zhen raised his head again, heaved a sigh of relief, and his eyes were bright again.

——It is true that there is no haste.

Lu Ci had no way of knowing that the little prince, who purposely avoided meeting him, had gone through some intense ups and downs in his mind, and finally regained his enthusiasm.

After two days of running around, going through public inspections, filing records in Shangshu Province and other places, plus buying specialties in Bianjing, packing his bags, and buying a boat ticket... Although he was quite tired, he still rushed to the first place in the plan. Early on the morning of the third day, with a group of friends seeing him off, he set off by boat on time.

When seeing him off, Zhu said that he was the most mature and calm, and asked Lu Ci to rest assured in a gentle voice, he must be watching carefully; Liu Qi, who was still chic when we parted soon after we met, but this time, his eyes were red, and he hugged Lu Ci tightly. He refused to let go for a long time, but it was Yan Shu who couldn't stand it and helped to break it apart; Yan Shu knew the inside story best, knowing that Lu Ci went to avoid disaster, although he was reluctant, it was far less exaggerated than Liu Qi.

Lu Ci looked at Liu Qi wiping his tears dumbfounded, and when he wanted to say something, he heard Yan Shu sigh with envy: "At the end of the year, the Secretary's Office is extremely busy, but I told you to escape this calamity."

"..." The corner of Lu Ci's mouth twitched: "Brother Yan seems to be quite regretful."

Yan Shu snorted softly, "It's better to be busy alone than to be busy alone. You are enjoying your blessings, but I have to continue to work hard. Why don't I say a few words?"

Lu Ci said with a smile: "Those who are able work harder, isn't Brother Yan's busyness not seeking benevolence to obtain benevolence?"

Yan Shu's eyes shone brightly, and he also smiled: "Anyway, when the spring comes next year, you have to come back obediently, so I won't waste time missing you, and then don't forget to bring a letter back. After all, Goro is very reluctant to part with you, crying After staying for nearly one night, I didn't get enough sleep, so I had to coax him myself."

Lu Ci smiled and responded to each of them.

As the ship left the port, the people seeing off on the shore became farther and farther away, getting smaller and smaller, until they disappeared, Lu Ci suppressed the regret in his heart, and looked at the people around him.

This time, he brought three servants with him, one Di Qing, and a 'real raccoon slave' who especially clung to Di Qing.

Seeing the funny situation of the little raccoon slave entanglement with the big raccoon slave, Lu Ci couldn't help but slightly raised the corners of his lips, and said with a smile, "It really sticks to you."

The milk cat he picked up from the street last winter seemed to know his fate of being sent away as a hot potato once his frostbite was healed, so he tried every means to keep it.

After finding out that it couldn't break through Lu Ci's iron wall at all, and really couldn't please this difficult human being, it was so cunning that it changed the object of its obedience, and turned to please the other two people in the room who should also be able to make decisions.

However, Zhu Shuo is also a hard-hearted man, and he is not affected by it in the slightest. He sits at the table every night, except for the official business he brings back, which is to read the books borrowed from the pavilion, and he is very fascinated.

After being quarreled by it a few times, I learned to close the door and let it scratch the door coquettishly outside without moving.

When it failed to attack repeatedly, it had no choice but to retreat and try to please Liu Qi.

Liu Qi didn't know that he was actually the last choice of this cunning little thing, and was quickly followed by it "meow meow meow" all the way, and rolled on his desk from time to time, revealing its snow-white belly, letting it be touched at will Moved by her cuteness, even a little flattered.

As the relationship between one person and one cat gradually heated up, Liu Qi specially wrote a few poems for it. Seeing this, Lu Ci didn't mention sending it away.

Not only that, he saw that Liu Qi was so fascinated by cats that he had completely fallen into the posture of becoming a cat slave, and he thoughtfully took someone to the Wanxing Bazaar to teach him how to choose the exclusive tools for raccoon slaves.

Liu Qi seemed to be standing in the door of a new world that was opened on one side. After only a few quick glances, she couldn't help the urge to spend money and kept buying.

Toys, food, nests... everything will be there soon.

However, what everyone didn't expect was that this ghostly little raccoon slave saw that his own items in the house were constantly being added, and the range of activities he could move about was also increasing, so he finally determined that he would not be sent away After that, Liu Qi, who loves it the most, turned his face ruthlessly without warning.

On this day, when Liu Qi excitedly brought the newly bought cat climbing frame into the house and was about to install it, she was shocked to find that this cat would run all the way to meet him whenever he heard his footsteps. Then the little raccoon slave who was meowing at him with his face up, unexpectedly changed his face.

Not to mention that he came to pick up people, even if he heard Liu Qi calling its name 'Little Pear Blossom', he could only see it walking a catwalk in a circle, without even looking at it, and went back to the nest I went to play with the new toy I bought yesterday.

Liu Qi was dumbfounded.

Under Zhu Shuo's watching with a smile on his face, he first wanted to touch the little raccoon slave who was like a docile lover yesterday in disbelief, but he gave him a vicious look and then hit him a few times with his paw pads. Next, only Samsam stopped.

I dare not touch it anymore, but the sadness of Liu Qi, who was forced to "break up" and was despised, lasted for more than half a month.

During the period, he wrote seven or eight poems of condemnation in a row, and finally, as the little raccoon slave's attitude towards it improved slightly, he reluctantly stopped.

Although the old love can't be revived, Liu Qi, who likes the new and dislikes the old herself, can gradually accept being rejected by the "heart cat" when she is no longer resisted by it.

But Zhu said it was clear that Lu Ci saw that the little raccoon slave was too treacherous, and that he had learned the trick of crossing the river and demolishing the bridge without a teacher. 'Communication', only to have such a situation.

Not long after, as soon as Di Qing arrived, the raccoon slave, whose temper and stature had grown together, had a complete nemesis.

I don't know how Di Qing trained the cat. He obviously didn't buy anything for him, and he never yelled at him, but after a few days, he honestly walked around him, and he didn't dare to be arrogant at all, but was obedient. Obedient appearance.

Such a situation made Liu Qifei, who had completely walked out of that 'relationship', not only feel uneasy, but also very happy.

On this long trip, this "feeling and ungrateful" big cat followed him naturally.

Hearing Lu Ci talk about the cat, Di Qing lowered his head subconsciously, and took a look at it that was docilely curled around his neck.

Then Lu Ci was surprised to see that the big cat that dared to show off its might in front of Liu Qi actually stood up the moment it met Di Qing's gaze, as if it was frightened.

Immediately, the whole body seemed to have turned into a puddle of water, and limply slid off Di Qing's body, turning into a big cat cake, flat on the ground.

Lu Ci raised his eyebrows with great interest: "It turns out that one thing descends one thing."

This is not surprising.

Lu Ci thought that Di Qing had the ability to go hunting alone in the mountains since he was a child. Although his stature may not look strong, he is extremely capable. The most rare thing is his wildness and vigor.

It's perfectly normal for a pampered cat like Xiao Lihua to be overwhelmed by Di Qing's aura.

Di Qing stammered: "It's, it's okay."

Seeing his nervous appearance, Lu Ci couldn't help laughing: "I just asked casually, why are you nervous?"

Di Qing couldn't answer at all.

He didn't know why he was nervous, but every time he saw Lu Gongzu talking to him with a smile, his heart beat uncontrollably, his face became hot, and he couldn't speak well.

Fortunately, Lu Ci had been busy for two solid days, and because he was already on the boat, he was finally relieved, so he stopped teasing him, but told him not to get too close to the side of the boat when playing, so as not to fall into the river, I went back to the compartment to catch up on sleep first.

On Di Qing's left arm was a big cat that had climbed up again at some point and was clinging like soft mud, standing upright.

After he bowed his head obediently and "respectfully sent" Lu Ci back to his car, he immediately let go of the treacherous cat.

The civet cat who dared to challenge Liu Qi openly on weekdays, in front of Di Qing, even if he was treated so coldly, he only dared to raise his face and let out an aggrieved 'meow'.

But after Di Qing glanced at it lightly, it didn't even dare to "meow" any more, it jumped lightly, and went to stroll on the boat by itself.

Di Qingsui ignored it, and after hesitating for a while, he took out a book from his small bag and read it carefully at the table.

He didn't read for long, guessing that it was almost time for lunch, so he put the book down and walked to the small kitchen...

Lu Ci was not sleepy, and because he was in a hurry for breakfast, he only took a nap for an hour before waking up leisurely.

To be honest, he was awakened by a burst of food aroma that made people move their index fingers.

As soon as he opened his eyes, the servant sitting on the side couch immediately noticed it.He hurriedly fetched hot soup and a clean towel for Lu Ci to wash.

After Lu Ci took care of himself, he opened the door, and saw Di Qing who was honestly sitting at a table near the deck, reading seriously.

Lu Ci smiled: "You finished the boat so quickly?"

When Di Qing went from Fenzhou to Bianjing, it was his first time to travel far. He traveled all the way by land, and he traveled with a large caravan. Obviously, it was his first time to take a boat.

It is perfectly normal for a young man of this age to feel fresh and unable to resist exploring.

Zhu, who is also young and mature, said that he used to wander around on the boat, and from time to time, he was inspired by watching the river and the sea, and wrote poems and fu.

Di Qing hastily responded, but he was vague about the question: "Well."

Fortunately, Lu Ci didn't ask, but was immediately attracted by the seductive fragrance emanating from the small and exquisite porcelain plate in front of him, which was receiving some lamp oil in a small porcelain bowl and was warming: "This is What?"

Di Qing quickly replied: "Sauce."

Lu Ci asked curiously, "Why is the sauce so fragrant?"

When he left Beijing this time, he did not take away the cook from the house, but hired one temporarily to serve their meals on the ship. When he arrived at the place, the employment contract would be terminated, and the other party would return with the ship on his own.

Because the order was urgent and the salary was not high, Lu Ci did not expect to encounter good things with good quality and low price.

But if the other party's craftsmanship is really so good, and he is so particular about making condiments, then he can't help thinking about extending the cook's employment contract for a period of time.

Di Qing smiled unconsciously, and replied: "Use ginger, garlic, peppercorns, broken rice..."

The more Lu Ci heard the more something was wrong, he raised his eyebrows and said, "You did it?"

Di Qing nodded embarrassingly, and said politely as if asking for credit: "The fish meat is also cooked."

As soon as the words fell, he seemed to be juggling, and carefully took out a plate of fish fillets cut as thin as a cicada's wings from the small bamboo basket on the side.

Seeing his expectant look, Lu Ci said helplessly: "There are cooks to do things, why are you wasting this time? Why don't you read more books."

Di Qing said anxiously: "It's no trouble, I've read the book too."

Fearing that Lu Ci would not believe it, he took the book on the side again and indicated to Lu Ci which page he had read.

When he entered the kitchen, he saw that the cook was very sloppy, and his skills were not very good at first glance.

It will take ten or so days to stay on the boat, if he is allowed to cook, Lu Gongzu will definitely not like it, so he can only let things go.

Lu Ci shook his head: "I know what you mean, but when I take you on a long trip, I don't want you to cook for me and work hard in the stove. I just want you to see the scenery along the way and read books in your spare time. Let’s increase our knowledge together.”

Di Qing pursed her lips and said in a low voice, "I see."

"I don't mean to blame you." Seeing his depressed look with his head down, Lu Ci softened his heart instantly, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "It's just that if you really don't like that cook's skills, you don't have to do it yourself. Cook. When the ship docks at night, I will take you ashore to taste the special delicacies along the way, and pack some more, which will be enough for the next day's brunch."

After hearing this, Di Qing's dark eyes suddenly brightened again.

Seeing this strong emotional change, Lu Ci wanted to laugh very much, but he held back in consideration of the child's face.

——I really didn't expect that this little rice bucket is not only edible, but also quite picky.

Thinking of this, Lu Ci couldn't help feeling a little worried.

Could it be that the little raccoon slave will go astray in the end, and instead of taking the tribute exam, he will make a fuss about being a cook?

What he didn't know at all was that he wanted to go left at all.

If he went to Dijiazhuang on a whim one day, no matter who he asked, he would get the same answer: Before he met Lu Gongzu, Di Qing was not picky about food, to the extent that the so-called rice porridge with raw rice grains and thin soup looks like The scorched bird meat by accident, the fish that has not been disembowelled...all of them can be stuffed into the mouth without changing expression.

He is indeed somewhat spiritual, and he is willing to spend his time studying food, although he is not as good as the royal chef in the palace, but his ability to obtain local materials is enough to make Xiao Taotie very satisfied.

Although deprived of the 'right' to cook, Di Qing knew how much Lu Ci cared for him, and also understood the hidden danger that the cook might be too poor, which would cause the other party to eat poorly, so he became obedient and only read sage books.

At night, without breaking his word, Lu Ci led his servants and Di Qing into the bustling city.

However, today is not what it used to be. It is completely different from the situation when I took Zhu Shuo out and only enjoyed a meal occasionally. At this time, Lu Ci has been an official for more than three years, and now he is still receiving a generous gift from the third rank. Salary people.

With the addition of some extra income he brought in by himself, he is already quite wealthy with a house, a horse and spare money, and he can really live a luxurious life.

After a full meal in the most famous restaurant in the area, Lu Ci leisurely took Di Qing, who was blushing with embarrassment, and left behind a table with an astonishing number of empty plates and bowls, which left the waiters dumbfounded, and went to the busy place. went to the street.

Because Lu Ci came with the intention of wandering around casually, he had the mind of going wherever he went, so he didn't hire a little guide to lead the way.

So unknowingly, the two people who were not familiar with their place of life accidentally strayed into the alleys all over the Qinlou Chu Pavilion.

Lu Ci calmly led Di Qing through it, and smiled back at the courtesans who were soliciting customers, but he was not moved by his glances at all.

There are quite a few women who were attracted by his rare and handsome appearance, and they used a lot of motivation in the act of soliciting customers who had only put three-pointed attention on it.

If it wasn't for Lu Ci's formidable aura that prevented them from approaching easily, and his walking was relaxed and not slow at all, he wouldn't have been able to get away so easily.

Even so, while they were unsuccessful, they still threw the champagne without giving up.

Di Qing was held by Lu Ci's hand, of course he was reluctant to break free, but his actions were naturally not as sensitive as normal, so he was inevitably thrown by some veils that smelled of makeup.

Thinking of the real target the veil was aiming at, Di Qing's complexion soon became darker and darker.

The author has something to say: Notes:

When the officials of the capital want to leave the city, they have to report their surname, their official position, their mission, and where they are going on business.These situations will also be reported to Yushitai and Shangshuxing for further investigation.During Song Renzong's reign, there was a prime minister, Zhang Shixun, who retired at home when he was old.Once he went out for an outing in the city, and when he came back, he was interrogated by the city guards. The old man felt aggrieved, and wrote a poem saying: "Walking in Lingmao to send the spring back, why should the officials be so hard to guess. Eighty-year-olds have no rank. Three, come to Fengchi." He only complained for a while, and did not dare to challenge the system. ("Living in the Song Dynasty")